The Vanished Light: A Star Wars Story

X

"My parents... why was I taken from them?" Jayden asked herself as she walked through a deep green forest all alone. "And that man. Who was that?"
Thoughts of her hallucination kept fluttering through her mind constantly. There was no answers, just questions. No one responded to her or even came to search for her. She was alone.
Alone.
The thing she was used to.
Jayden grabbed hold of her DL-44 and held it close to her chest for security. Each noise she heard - a fallen leaf, a twig snapping under her heavy boots, steps from alien-like animals, practically any unsettling noises -, she would turn off he safety and pull the trigger for no particular reason apart from fear.
She gulped as she kept walking and firing.

"This is the place," General Flynn told Cantor through an intercom. "Utah, the planet of absolute green."
Cantor walked out of his ship - with his mask on - and as he stepped onto the grass, he felt a weird sensation through his body.
She's here. He thought to himself.
Cantor looked where the felling wanted him to go and strided towards a lone forest with his lightsaber in his hand.

Jayden kept looking around, unsure of her surroundings. She quickly turned as another fallen twig snapped, aiming her blaster and fired it.
She stopped and stared around her. The landscape was uneven with rocks sticking out of the ground, trees dotted close and far from each other.
She heard another noise, but it wasn't anything she'd heard previously. Jayden turned around to see a masked man in the forest, with an illuminating weapon in his hand.
She recognised the familiar person and the mask and instantly pulled the trigger, not thinking about aiming. The red bullets she shot out reflected, almost hittig her.
Her legs were shaking and the only choice she had to face was: RUN!
Jayden sprinted through the forest, unable to check behind her otherwise she would stumble and collapse. She spotted a bush nearby and hid behind it.
The masked man searched for her in the far distance as she peered over it. Her hands were shaking with fear, heart pounding hard against her chest, adrenaline was ridiculously high. But without thinking, Jayden broke into a run and faced a cliff-face in front of her. She checked behind her and there was no sight of him, only her footsteps.
Jayden looked up and climbed up the earth-brown cliff, hoping everything would be alright.

She got to the top and her gloves were ripped on the palms, her forehead was drenched, eyes squinting as dust lay scattered on her face. Jayden kept groaning as her arms were aching from exhaustion.
"Jayden Visa," a familiar voice said her name.
Jayden looked up and she saw a green creature, yellow eyes, red pupils, black atire.
"Sulluk... is that you?" Jayden asked. She stood up and stared at her old companion. "I thought you were dead..."
Sulluk shrugged his muscular shoulders but something wasn't right with him. He wasn't smiling.
"I was. But the thing is," he pulled out a blaster and aimed it at her shoulder. "I'm sorry."
Jayden was startled as Sulluk wasn't backing down. "I never should of trusted you."
Jayden scowled at Sulluk, but this was his only response. "It's the right thing to do."
He pulled the trigger and the bullet hit her shoulder blade. She yelled in pain and stumbled back, slowly falling off the cliff.

Cantor stared up as the target fell into his arms with a bit of force. He scowled at Sulluk, but as he wore a mask Sulluk didn't understand his expression he was pulling.
"Can I roam free?" Sulluk shouted from the high ground.
Cantor thrusted his arm up at him, making him fly out of his view. There was no noise afterwards. He knew he killed him.
"This is what you get for running away, 2199." And he walked off with Jayden in his arms.

"Where's Jayden?" Oberon ran up to Shira a moment later.
Shira looked at Oberon, then the sandy destination she was a few hours ago.
"Umm-" Shira murmured under her breath, thinking. "I last saw her by that sandy area, but I left her and the next minute, you ask me where Jayden is? I am so confused..."
Oberon scratched his cheek in frustration, still searching for her. "Oh, AURA!" Oberon ran towards the Jedi Master.
"Yes," Aura said whilst staring beyond the shimmering water.
"Jayden, do you know where she is?"
"No, but when I last saw her, she was scared and ran off towards the forest there." Aura pointed at the woods, directing where the missing crew-member.
Fear consumed Oberon.
He looked around him frantically for the location saw a row of stray trees, scattered in different places.

He ran into the forest with Shira after him with utter panic striving through him.
They kept running until they found footprints printed on the soil. Shira led the way with Oberon walking behind until...
"Her backpack," Shira identified.
"No, NO!"